After the End (A Photo Essay)

missing our sunny Spring days...

Where, oh, where has the sun gone these last few days?

Rebel is missing his sun baths...

Fixing ANC's Bike Problem

Looking to the future; Meghan and I can hardly believe that we have only three months left on beautiful Kodiak Island. Although we will certainly miss the amazing people whom we've befriended and the spectacular setting of Kodiak, we are looking forward to the advantages of living in Anchorage. For instance, we are excited about Kincaid Park's miles of (lighted) cross country trails, cheaper groceries, and expanded dining options. For me, the prospect of riding a bike on smooth pavement is quite exciting. Back in Denver I was fortunate enough to make a seven mile ride to work every day on a fixed gear bicycle. On loan from Meghan's brother Patrick, the "fixie" was a thrilling ride. For the uninitiated, a fixed gear means that the rear wheel lacks a freewheel so there is no coasting - whenever the wheel moves the chain moves and thus the pedals move. Some folks, like me, ride a fixie without brakes using their legs to apply resistance to the pedals to slow down. To say the least it requires a bit more anticipation than a "modern" bicycle (originally all racing bikes where fixed gear) especially riding in the city.
Although Anchorage is a great city for outdoor recreation, the city streets are not conducive to bike travel. Currently Anchorage's narrow shoulders, busy four lane roads, and unaware motorists create conditions unsafe for lots of bike commuting. Help may be on the way though. The Anchorage Daily News reports that the city has proposed a plan to increase bicycle traffic in the next 20 years. Proposed improvements include creating more greenbelts and widening paths. More encouraging, the plan calls for 51 miles of new bicycle lanes in the next four years. I think I'll wait until the improvements are complete before riding a brakeless fixie in Anchorage.

God Save the Kings...

Kodiak kings are in dire straits, and no one seems to know why...

The Ayakulik River failed to meet its minimum escapement goal of 4,800 kings two of the past three years. A strong return of 24,742 kings in 2004 slid to 3,071 last year, far short of the 10-year average of 13,400 spawners. The Karluk River fared even worse. Just 730 kings escaped in 2008, the lowest count on record. Kodiak biologists anticipate another dismal return this summer -- well short of the escapement goal of 3,600 to 7,300 fish biologists seek to ensure strong future runs. Nobody knows why the Kodiak fisheries crashed.

You can read the rest of the story here, in the Anchorage Daily News.

Cliffhanger in the Talkeetna Mountains

A 21-year-old pilot looking for a place to snowboard lost control of his 1941 Taylorcraft in a snow-crust landing and slid to the brink of a cliff. The plane caught on a rock just below the top, and nobody was hurt. Read the story here. More photos and discussion at SuperCub.org.

Gourmet Cruising

We rushed back from Pasagshak to get to the slip in time for Dad's surprise birthday dinner cruise.

Once we climbed aboard, everything was ship-shape...

Fair sailing on calm seas.




Everyone was out enjoying the rays.

Thar's Flukes!

Mom and Dad are in town visiting for Whale Fest, 2009.

On Sunday we joined members of the Kodiak Audubon for a hike around Narrow Cape. We saw dozens of whales off-shore and managed to avoid any errant missile strikes. Our guide and naturalist, Stacy Studebaker, said that they were gray whales passing through on their migration to the Chukchi and Bering Seas.

Bruce captured some of the action on video while Mom surveilled the horizon for spouts.

Mom was interested in the buffalo wallows.

Mom venturing across the lagoon.

Dad is afraid of heights and didn't get too close to the edge. He was worried that one of the bunkers might fall into the ocean, taking him along for the ride.

The hiking got a little extreme as we scrambled down one of the buffalo routes over a creek bed.

All's well that ends well...on to the next adventure!

Badgers en route

This just in from the "Unc" (my nickname for the Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport; Alaskans refer to Stevens as "Uncle Ted"): Tom and Deb, Meghan's parents, are awaiting to depart on the final leg of their journey from Spring Green, WI. Last we heard Tom was bringing two rifles and some venison. In the meantime, the North Pacific clouds have lifted to offer views of the new blanket of white on Kodiak's high peaks. We hope that more Badgers follow their trail this summer...

Signs of Spring?

The Balmoral wintered in the Caribbean

Although temps remain in the thirties and the snow piles linger, there are a few signs of spring in Kodiak. No, not the heads of crocuses, but the return of the M/V Tustumena and a cruise ship, the Balmoral. The Wisconsin-built "Trusty 'Tusty," Kodiak's regular ferry, spent the winter in Portland for an overhaul and steamed into Pier 1 this morning. Meanwhile, over at Pier 2, the Balmoral cruise ship released a few dozen umbrella-toting visitors on the shores of Kodiak. It's funny how an umbrella sticks out here in Kodiak, locals simply don't carry them. Those of us staying in port, however, will have to keep the raincoats out. The weather forecast is calling for several more days of rain.

The "Trsuty Tusty" at Pier 1 in greener days

Six Degrees of Whale Fest

While Kodiak is small enough for most people to be connected in some way or another, Meghan and I are always amazed at the wide variety of Kodiakan pursuits. The poster for this year's Whale Fest was designed by local Kodiak artist Robert Wagner. He is a budding artist best known for his 2005 full length film Cope and 2003's Equivocation. More recently, Wagner's multimedia production company, Kiluda Rock, is busy with a new feature shot on Kodiak Island - How to Survive . We'll let you know when it's available for your queue. Although we have not seen either of Wagner's two films, Meghan does have a Wagner original hanging in her office at the courthouse - a beautiful sketch of dark ravens on a bright green background.
This year's Whale Fest officially begins on Friday, but we'll be part of the audience for Patrick Saltonstall's lecture Alutiiq Marine Mammal Hunting Through Time, a whale-related event held at the Alutiiq Museum. As a BIG fan of Moby Dick, I for one am very excited. Now, hopefully we spot some flukes while Meghan's parents are in town during the Fest.

Happy Easter

Peeps....

baskets...

coloring eggs...

...and...MORE SNOW!

Just in time to welcome the ambassadors from Wisconsin...

...where the daytime temps have been in the 50's and the motorcycles are already out of the barn for the season.

Welcome to the Last Frontier!

Meghan and the Dream of Seaglass

After only 15 minutes of searching Meghan displays her arcipluvian haul

Sunday after dinner we hopped down to a beach near town just past the shipyard. The sun had set and evening's light lingered as we scanned the rocky shore for shiny pieces. Meghan, as fastidious as a crab, soon found a variety of smooth glass scraps - several were larger and more colorful than pieces of hard candy. If I had not pestered her to leave the beach it seems she would have combed the waterline well into the the night. After returning home and spreading out her haul, Meghan became concerned that her hunt was so fruitful because we had trespassed - rendering her collection illegal. The next morning Meghan awoke from a dream admonishing her to return the pieces of sea glass to "Benny's Beach" and she became even more skittish about her finds. Luckily, yesterday she learned that the beach does not belong to "Benny" and is public. Meghan is quite happy to add the pieces to her quickly growing menagerie.

An April Evening Ski Tour

High on Pyramid's southern ridge looking west.

On Saturday, while UNC was dominating Villanova in the National Semifinal (my bracket was busted weeks ago), I completed a tour on Pyramid Mountain. Although most of the skiing on Pyramid is off of its north ridge, the southern ridge is its most striking feature. It is the southern ridge, long and sharp, that gives Pyramid its name – viewed from the south it seems as if you are looking at the corner of rocky pyramid. Not interested in driving up the pass to the north ridge, I stopped at Kodiak’s “muni” golf course, took out the skis and started climbing. It was 4:45 p.m. Except for a few steeper slopes that received several hours of sunlight during the long clear afternoon; the snow on the climb to the ridge was solid.

Looking up the ridge

Once reaching the ridge at about 6:00 p.m., the sun still high above the horizon, I had striking views of Buskin Lake, Barometer Mountain, and Chiniak Bay. I continued to climb along the ridge encouraged by its gradual slope. “Could I top out?” That is, could I reach the summit? I thought to myself between heavy breaths, perhaps pushing the envelope. After several more feet of elevation gain, however, I realized that a “summit push” might not be the safest idea. The ridge began to slope off to the right creating a double fall line that tested the traction of my skins. What’s more, the left side of the ridge was defined by a large cornice, which was definitely “off limits.” After losing traction and sliding, backwards, a few yards downhill I decided it was time to turn around and lay some turns. The downhill offered some of best the skiing that I have encountered so far this spring. I skied back across the golf course and reached the car at 7:00 p.m. - amazed at the amount of daylight still available.

The ridge from "sea level"

Puff the Magic Ash Cloud

Early this morning Mister Redout blew his top in a rather large eruption. In fact, lightning was observed in the initial eruption cloud. Southeasterly winds carried the 50,ooo mile high ash plume in Kodiak's direction just skirting the north end of the archipelago. Above is an image from the puff prediction animation at the Alaska Volcano Observatory.

April Volcanoes Bring...?

Today marks the 25th Anniversary of the Mt. Edgecumbe "eruption." (4/1/1974)

From sitka.com: Residents of Sitka, Alaska were alarmed when the long-dormant volcano neighboring them, Mount Edgecumbe, suddenly began to belch out billows of black smoke. People spilled out of their homes onto the streets to gaze up at the volcano, terrified that it was active again and might soon erupt. Luckily it turned out that man, not nature, was responsible for the smoke. A local practical joker named Porky Bickar had flown hundreds of old tires into the volcano's crater and then lit them on fire, all in a (successful) attempt to fool the city dwellers into believing that the volcano was stirring to life. According to local legend, when Mount St. Helens erupted six years later, a Sitka resident wrote to Bickar to tell him, "This time you've gone too far!" Read the whole story here.